Stray bullet hits Resica Elementary

No students were harmed Thursday afternoon when a stray bullet cracked a window of a second-grade classroom at Resica Elementary School.

DAVID PIERCE and MARTA GOUGER

No students were harmed Thursday afternoon when a stray bullet cracked a window of a second-grade classroom at Resica Elementary School.

When police arrived at the school on Gravel Ridge Road in Middle Smithfield Township, they located four men nearby who were target practicing with handguns and rifles.

The four, ages 18 to 21, were shooting at targets fastened to trees about a half-mile from the school, according to State Police Lt. Robert Bartal with Troop N in Hazleton.

Their names have not been released because they have not been charged.

The second-grade teacher acted quickly when the bullet hit the window of her classroom at 12:20 p.m. She told the children to get down by the lockers away from the window.

The teacher, whose name was not released by the school, quickly grabbed the phone in her classroom, located away from the window, and called principal Gail Kulick, who notified school security, who in turn notified police.

"The teacher said the bullet came from the woods," said Luke Tompkins, one of the 20 students in the classroom. "It was a loud bang."

The school was in lockdown, and safety protocols were followed. Superintendent Sharon Laverdure said the students in the classroom were startled and were moved to another area.

State police arrived in under seven minutes, Bartal said.

The bullet did not pass through the window into the classroom, police said. They discovered that the round had struck the window, traveled through the first pane of the double-pane window and fell onto the outside sill, landing between the second pane and the outside screen, police said.

Police, who could still hear the target shooting in the distance, located the men and interviewed them.

By 1:30 p.m., police determined the school was not targeted for any criminal purpose and the area was declared safe. The school lifted the lockdown.

Kulick personally called all the parents of the students who were in that classroom. The rest of the school's parents were notified through the school's automated calling system.

On a normal day, 591 students attend Resica. On Thursday afternoon, 115 students were signed out by their parents.

Deborah Tompkins was one of the parents who came for her son Luke. "I don't understand why they would be target practicing near the school," she said.

William Rose, who has a son in kindergarten in the school, expressed the same thought. "I'm not anti-gun," he said, "but how can somebody be shooting bullets so close to the school?"

The district is hosting a question-and-answer session for the community at 3:45 p.m. today. Rose was disappointed that the meeting wasn't Thursday.

Kulick said, "I'm just very happy we have the staff who know what to do. (The teacher) followed procedures to a 'T.'''

Another parent, Michelle Ledrew, questioned that. "They had no plan whatsoever. They were totally unprepared for this," she said.

Laverdure said some parents picking up children were confused because they entered the school through a different door. Parents were taken to a multi-purpose room, and a staff member brought their child to them.

She wants to hear feedback from parents. "We're taking this very seriously," Laverdure said.

The Monroe County District Attorney's Office is investigating. Anyone with information is asked to contact the state police at Swiftwater at 570-839-7701.